cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/4081300

Taxpayers are often left in the dark by politicians who have spent more than $3 billion to settle claims of police misconduct involving thousands of officers, among them many that have been repeatedly accused of wrongdoing.

Unlike cases that make headlines, such as the $27 million Minneapolis paid to the family of George Floyd or the $12 million paid to Breonna Taylor’s family, most claims of police misconduct are resolved quietly and with smaller sums.

Cities say payments to resolve misconduct allegations, ranging from excessive force to illegal search and seizure, are more cost-effective than fighting lawsuits in court but since such settlements rarely involve admissions of wrongdoing, they allow misconduct to be repeated.

How much cities pay — and who the responsible officers are — is generally hidden from the public, whose taxes often cover these costs.

To shed some light on the process, Washington Post reporters spent more than a year filing public records requests and combing through court documents to connect nearly 40,000 payments to specific officers. That investigation documented nearly 40,000 payments involving allegations of police misconduct in 25 of the nation’s largest police departments, totaling over $3 billion.